May 25 Update: 3x AIR MILES on select outdoor items at Lowe's and Cathay Pacific YVR-JFK seat sale

Now that spring has hit most of Canada (Newfoundland we hope you get it soon after that big snow day this week!) lots of you will be doing gardening and outdoor updates which may include new patio furniture and more. Well if that's the case Lowe's is offering 3x AIR MILES Reward Miles when you spend $150 or more on patio furniture, grills, gazebos and more this weekend. Find out more here.

Posts since our last update:

• Good and bad news - Cathay Pacific Asia Miles changes coming on June 22
  Asia Miles has been sending out emails to their members announcing changes to Asia Miles program. Changes are happening…
• American AAdvantage: Earn up to 4x Miles for stays at IHG Hotels Worldwide until July 31
  This offer awards triple AAdvantage miles on all IHG stays except those at Crowne Plaza which will earn quadruple…
• Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan - Up to a 40% bonus when you buy miles
  Alaska Airlines has launched their next buy miles bonus of 2018! The 40% bonus is their ongoing bonus these…

Travel Deals
Cathay Pacific Vancouver - New York JFK sale: Economy class from $525 and Premium Economy from $965 round trip. Book by May 31 for travel until June 30. Find out more here

Remember to visit Rewards Canada's Travel Booking site to book travel directly with many of your favourite airlines, hotels and more!

Canadian Bonus Offers
Best Western Rewards
- Earn a US$20 Best Western Travel Card on your next Best Western stay Worldwide. More... Until Sep 3, 18

Other Bonus Offers
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
- Earn up to 40% Bonus Mileage Plan Miles when you buy 10,000 or more miles. More... Until Jul 3, 18

American AAdvantage
- Earn up to 4x AAdvantage Miles for stays at IHG Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Jul 31, 18

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- 50% Bonus Asia Miles for 2-night stays at any participating properties under Millennium Hotels & Resorts. More... Until Jun 30, 18

Copa ConnectMiles
- 40% Bonus ConnectMiles when you buy or gift 5,000 or more ConnectMiles. More... Until May 31, 18

Ethiopian ShebaMiles
- Double ShebaMiles when you fly Ethiopian between Addis Ababa and Barcelona. More... Jul 1 - Jul 31, 18

Iberia Plus
- Triple Avios for stays at Accor Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Jun 30, 18

IHG Rewards Club
- Fast Track to Elite Status or earn Triple Points for stays at Kimpton Hotels More... Targeted Offer - May not work for everyone  Until Aug 15, 18

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
- Double Mileage Bank Miles for stays at participating Chatrium Hotels in Asia. More... Until Jun 30, 18

Marriott Rewards
- 3,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT for stays on the opening package at the Bangkok Marriott Hotel The Surawongse. More... Until Jun 28, 18
- 5,000 Bonus Rewards Points per stay of 2+ nights at any of 8 participating Kessler’s Autograph Collection hotels in Southeast U.S. More... Jun 1 - Aug 24, 18

Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus
- Earn up to Triple ROP Miles for stays of 2+ nights at Accor Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Jun 30, 18


Follow Rewards Canada:

Good and bad news - Cathay Pacific Asia Miles changes coming on June 22

Asia Miles has been sending out emails to their members announcing changes to Asia Miles program. Changes are happening on both the earning and redeeming sides. Overall they aren't crazy terrible changes for us Canadians although one could ultimately look at this as a devaluation since some of the most aspirational awards that some Asia Miles members look forward to are becoming more expensive. All of these changes will take place on June 22.

Let's look at the earning changes first:
No longer will Asia Miles be earned based on the exact distance you fly, they will now award you miles based on the zone you fly.  Here are the zones and miles you will earn for flying based on the cabin and fare class:

This new mileage earning format is only applicable to Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon flights. All flights on partner airlines will continue to earn miles based on actual distance and fare class.

Here are comparisons of what you earn now and what you will earn as of June 22 between Vancouver and Hong Kong:

As you can see in most cases (4 of 6) you'll earn more Asia Miles now. But of course you have to also look at redemption to complete the equation!

Let's look at the redemption changes:
Cathay Pacific will now be in the league of most other airlines and price tickets based on one way awards and these will be 50% of the round trip cost. We saw Aeroplan do this a few years back and it has proved to be very popular so we could only expect the same for Asia Miles. Cathay is being honest in that they state economy class redemptions will be the same or cheaper with this update however premium cabin redemptions, especially on long haul flights will become more expensive.

Let's look at Vancouver - Hong Kong again - here are the comparisons of the old rates versus the new redemption rates for Standard awards:

This isn't very good news for those looking at this route! While economy stays the same all other classes have gone up in price and some are significant like the near 25% increase for a round trip flight in First Class.

Another popular redemption is Cathay Pacific's 5th freedom flight between Vancouver and New York - and it's mostly good news here except for the popular first class redemption sees a 10,000 mile increase:

And one more look for our last Canadian route:

Only good news here is for those flying on Economy Class award tickets - all others see pretty big increases again.

Cathay does say they will increase award availability with the new charts by 20% but what they don't tell us is where that 20% will fit - will it be in their standard charts or their more expensive Choice or Tailored award charts that already provide more availability?

I don't know of too many people who have been using their Asia Miles for the long haul routes out of Canada but there are quite of few of you who have been using them for the YVR-JFK route and thankfully that route isn't affected terribly.

You can read more about these changes here.

American AAdvantage: Earn up to 4x Miles for stays at IHG Hotels Worldwide until July 31

This offer awards triple AAdvantage miles on all IHG stays except those at Crowne Plaza which will earn quadruple miles! This offer is good for those who may not be planning many IHG stays where they could do better with an Accelerate offer credited to IHG Rewards Club.

Offer details:
Earn up to 4x AAdvantage Miles for stays at IHG Hotels Worldwide. Full details, online registration and booking (Registration is required) Until Jul 31, 18
Triple miles awarded for stays at all IHG brands except Crowne Plaza Hotels. Stays at Crown Plaza Hotels will earn quadruple miles.

Excerpts from the T&Cs:
Must be an IHG® Rewards Club member  with a registered address in North or South America with
American Airlines AAdvantage®miles as the chosen earning preference,must register member number in advance and must be in good standing in the AAdvantage® program to participate in “3X/ 4X the miles” campaign. Triple miles will be awarded on all Qualifying Stays after completing 1st Qualifying  Stay, between May 15, 2018 and July 31, 2018 (“Promotion Period”) (both dates inclusive).  Quadruple miles will be awarded on all Qualifying Stays at Crowne Plaza® brand hotels  after completing 1st Qualifying Stay,  during Promotion Period.  Bonus miles multiplier will be based on the current base  miles awarded per IHG hotel brand.  Member will only receive bonus miles for one offer for each Qualifying Stay (i.e. – a member who is registered and completes a Qualifying Stay at a Crowne Plaza will only be eligible for the 4X offer).  Maximum bonus award is 15,000 bonus miles per member during this campaign.

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan - Up to a 40% bonus when you buy miles

Alaska Airlines has launched their next buy miles bonus of 2018! The 40% bonus is their ongoing bonus these days and is always decent but we do see a 50% bonus several times per year so unless you need the miles right away we would wait to buy. Remember there is also no limit to the number of miles you can buy each year, you are simply limited to a maximum of 60,000 miles pre-bonus per transaction. The last offer saw the 40% bonus kick in at the 40,000 mile level while this time you can score that bonus with a lower purchase of only 30,000 miles.

With the 40% offer you are buying Mileage Plan Miles at roughly US$ 2.11 cents each:

 
Seeing that you can redeem miles for premium class flights on British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Hainan, Korean Air and more, there are lots of options for you to use these miles. Remember it only takes 70,000 Mileage Plan miles to fly Cathay Pacific First Class one way from North America to Asia and those 70K will cost you $1478.13 as seen above - and to pay for that first class ticket will cost you a lot more than that!

Offer details
Earn up to 40% Bonus Mileage Plan Miles when you buy 10,000 or more miles.  Buy Miles Here Until Jul 3, 18

20% bonus for purchases of 10,000 to 19,000 miles
30% bonus for purchases of 20,000 to 29,000 miles
40% bonus for purchases of 30,000+ miles

Find many more Mileage Plan offers here.

May 23 Update: Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Award Sale, WestJet One Day Flash Sale + 6 new bonuses

I hope everyone had a great May long weekend! This is our first update in a week and there hasn't been too much news floating around the world of rewards so there isn't much in this update!

Today's only news is Alaska Airlines launching a flash sale for award flights on many routes including some of their Canadian routes. The Canadian routes show at 5,000 miles from Seattle which is technically their lowest starting point even if there isn't a flash sale. Anyways check it out as there could be some deals for you if you were thinking of redeeming some Mileage Plan miles for an award flight. This sale only runs until tomorrow. Find out more here

Posts since our last update:

• Best Western Rewards: Receive a $20 BW Gift Card on your next stay at Best Western Hotels Worldwide
  Another travel card offer from Best Western is what we see for their latest global systemwide promotion. This time…
• Earn 60 Bonus AIR MILES Reward Miles for stays at IHG Hotels until the end of July
  If you are a serious AIR MILES collector and have summer travel plans then you can rack up the…
• The Ultimate Foodie Credit Card portfolio
  Yesterday we released the 14th Ultimate Credit Card Portfolio on Rewards Canada. This one is the Ultimate Foodie Credit…

Travel Deals
WestJet One Day Flash Sale: Save up to 15% off Econo base fares to destinations in Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and select U.S. destinations. Book by 9:59MT on May 23. Find out more here

Remember to visit Rewards Canada's Travel Booking site to book travel directly with many of your favourite airlines, hotels and more!

Canadian Bonus Offers
AIR MILES (Canada)
- 60 Bonus AIR MILES Reward Miles for stays at IHG Hotel stays Worldwide. More... Until Jul 31, 18

Other Bonus Offers
Alitalia MilleMiglia
- Triple MilleMiglia Miles for stays at Accor Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Jun 30, 18

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- 50% Bonus Asia Miles when you convert hotel loyalty points into Asia Miles. More... Bonus applicable if you have not converted points from May 1, 2017 to May 7, 2018. Does not inlcuded transfers from Marriott and SPG Until Jun 30, 18

Finnair Plus
- 50% Bonus Plus Points when you make your first hotel booking via Rocketmiles. More... Book by Jun 30, 18

Hilton Honors
- 50,000 Bonus Honors Points when you complete 4 or more nights within 90 days at Hilton Hotels Worldwide. More... Targeted offer - may not work for everyone Until Dec 31, 18

Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus
- 25% Bonus ROP Miles on all eligible Thai Airways and Thai Smile international flights. More... Until Jun 30, 18

Follow Rewards Canada:

Best Western Rewards: Receive a $20 BW Gift Card on your next stay at Best Western Hotels Worldwide

Another travel card offer from Best Western is what we see for their latest global systemwide promotion. This time they have doubled the travel card amount from $10 to $20 but are also limiting members to earning only one card. Still $20 back on a Best Western stay can be a hefty return seeing that many of their locations are available for under $100 per night. You will have 120 days to use the travel card from the date of issue which is why BW likes these types of promotions - they are banking on some people not using them and letting them expire. But for those of you who do stay at BW hotels at least semi-frequently this is a promotion you'll want to take advantage. Be sure to also check your email for this offer as some members are being targeted with an additional bonus of 2,000 points on each additional stay you make during the promotional period.

Offer details
Earn a US$20 Best Western Travel Card on your next Best Western stay Worldwide. Full details, online registration and booking (Registration is required) Until Sep 3, 18


Find many more Best Western Rewards bonus points offers here.

Earn 60 Bonus AIR MILES Reward Miles for stays at IHG Hotels until the end of July

If you are a serious AIR MILES collector and have summer travel plans then you can rack up the miles on your hotel stays! Last week we told you about the AIR MILES Best Western offer and now there is this offer to earn bonus miles at IHG Hotels Worldwide. IHG includes brands like InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, EVEN, Staybridge Suites, Candlewood Suites and HUALUXE® hotels.

Offer details
60 Bonus AIR MILES Reward Miles for stays at IHG Hotel stays Worldwide. Max 900 miles awarded. Full details and online booking Until Jul 31, 18

Find more AIR MILES Rewards Miles bonus offers here!

The Ultimate Foodie Credit Card portfolio

Yesterday we released the 14th Ultimate Credit Card Portfolio on Rewards Canada. This one is the Ultimate Foodie Credit Card portfolio!

In this feature of Rewards Canada's Ultimate Credit Card Portfolios we look at the ultimate one for those who like to enjoy food - whether it is cooking your own gourmet meals or going to three Michelin star restaurants. And when it comes to food - you buy it - no matter what so if you a major foodie you'll want to make sure you capitalize on those food purchases by maximizing the rewards you earn. So while this piece is focused on earn we also take into account what those points or cash back can get you. As we have always recommended and is standard with our Ultimate Wallets is that you should carry a Visa, a Mastercard and an American Express card in your wallet. The reason why is that there are benefits, promotions and earning potential unique to each brand of credit card regardless of the version of the card you have. We won't go into detail here as you can read all about it in our feature on how to Maximize your Miles and Points but here we outline one card from each brand that will help you as a foodie get the most bang for your buck. Ultimately there are various options that could be utilized for such a portfolio but we look at one card from each issuing family that we feel are the best fit for foodies. Find out what the ultimate portfolio is here!

Find all our Ultimate Card Portfolios here!